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Saatchi row moves to High Court

The dispute between the Saatchi Gallery and the landlord of its RHWL-designed space in London's County Hall has moved to the High Court.

The owners of County Hall, the Japanese Shirayama Shokusan Corporation, has accused the gallery of breaking the terms of its lease, it emerged late last week.

The spat between gallery owner Charles Saatchi and Shirayama's European representative Makota Okamoto has now turned into a three-way bunfight embroiling pop impresario Pete Waterman, who also occupies space in County Hall.

Waterman, who has links to the company that issued Saatchi's lease, has claimed that Saatchi approached him with highly defamatory claims about Okamoto.

He said these included accusing him of being engaged in fraud, embezzlement and theft.

The legal move comes in the wake of the news that AHMM and Paul Davis & Partners have joined forces to work up designs for the Saatchi Gallery's new Chelsea home, the Duke of York's Headquarters off the King's Road in Chelsea (AJ+ 28.09.05).

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